Personal Technology

Stanley A. Miller II

A week's worth of gaming was worth the effort

'L.A. Noire,' 'Dead Island' are fine efforts

Faced with some time away from work and left to my own devices, I booted up the Xbox 360 and put forth a serious effort to jam through the stack of games steadily piling up.

I geared up in comfy, loose-fitting slacker wear, filled my trusty Mason jar with fresh water and braced for a gaming marathon.

With the shades drawn and my faithful yellow Lab lounging on the ottoman, it was time to get into the games - which are also available on the PlayStation 3 and Windows PCs except for "L.A.. Noire," which will offer a PC version this fall.

What's a bit scary is that gaming season is just kicking in, with many great titles still to come. Still, here's how I spent about a week away from work, with only periodic naps and bathroom breaks:

"Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine": The "Warhammer" tabletop miniatures game is a big deal, and rightly so, with a rich, detailed mythos and a dedicated fan base. Considering that, the "Space Marine" video game is underwhelming as action-shooters go. Although the sci-fi warfare is fast-paced, gripping and gory, the game's environments are terribly linear, repetitive, drab and dull.

The game also struck me as remarkably short, with a single-player campaign that lasted about seven hours for me. And although you wade through hordes of ork invaders with a couple of computer-controller companions by your side, the game doesn't let you play through its story with friends - a feature that would have helped a lot.

A limited form of online cooperative play is scheduled to be available in October through a free download, which is something but still disappointing.

"El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron": Admittedly, I am not the biggest fan of action platforming games, which require you to stunt-jump your character through various hazards, inevitably plunging to a frustrating death. Often several.

It's not the genre, it's me, and my lack of skills and patience when I fall into a pit for the 20th time.

That said, I loved "El Shaddai" because it's so different. The game, which is inspired by ancient apocryphal biblical texts, tasks you as an agent of God to track down several fallen angels. The game is striking in both its anime-style art style and its attitude, which includes God checking in on your progress by calling your guardian angel over a mobile phone. The world of "El Shaddai"' is mesmerizing and beautiful and an amazing place to escape for hours.

"Dead Island": Just when you think there is no way another zombie game could be crammed into the gamescape, "Dead Island" drops, and it's delicious.

It's a first-person shooter and slasher with a story that starts with you waking up in your hotel room surrounded by a zombie apocalypse. Survival requires grabbing anything you can find - boat paddles, pipes, crowbars, etc. - and fighting your way to safety.

Thankfully, you aren't the only walking meal on the island; the other survivors need your help. Lending a hand advances the story, unlocks your character's abilities and leads to better weaponry. Aside from a few recently patched bugs and some visual performance issues, "Dead Island" is outstanding, offering the ability for up to three other players to join your game online and team up.

"L.A. Noire": No, that's not a misprint. Sure, I popped in this sandbox action game from the makers of "Grand Theft Auto" and "Red Dead Redemption" when it first went on sale in May. But I got busy, and it went on the shelf, where it aged like a fine wine.

This 1940s detective story, which combines third-person-perspective shooting, driving and a detailed system for investigating crimes, is a masterpiece. The incredibly detailed facial animations of characters are unlike anything I've ever seen in a game. And those expressions are an important part of the system of questioning suspects, because visual cues offer hints about their truthfulness or deception.

And, to its credit, "L.A. Noire" manages to surprise the players with some compelling storytelling that makes it very much worth playing.